WordPress 5.8 Release Candidate 4 Now Available

WordPress 5.8 Release Candidate 4

The fourth release candidate for the next major release, WordPress 5.8 is here. WordPress 5.8 Release Candidate 4 is now available for the general public to test. The RC4 includes fixes for some late-discovered blocking issues.

A release candidate (RC) means that the core development team is almost ready with 5.8. But, with millions of users and thousands of plugins and themes, they’re fully conscious of the possibility that something might have been missed.

WordPress 5.8 will be released on July 20, 2021. Since this update includes crucial changes, the development team needs your help to test the release.

To test WordPress 5.8, you can use the WordPress Beta Tester plugin or you can download WordPress 5.8 release candidate 4 here (zip). Also, you can use WP-CLI function to test: wp core update –version=5.8-RC4

If you want to know what you can expect in the next big release, v5.8, you can check out RC1RC2RC3, or WordPress 5.8 Field Guide.

This release candidate includes the following updates:

  • Block Editor: Backport fixes targeted for WordPress 5.8 RC4 ([51445] for #53397).
  • Media: When resizing, WebP images set the compression to “lossy” by default. It fixes a bug where the compression was set to “lossless” when the uploaded WebP images have extended file format (VP8X) ([51437] for #53653).
  • Media: Fix JS error in Media Library when infinite scroll enabled ([51441] for #53672).
  • Media: Document edge cases with the new image_editor_output_format filter ([51444] for #53667#53668#35725).
  • Privacy: Ensure the copy button actually copies the suggested privacy policy text ([51433] for #53652).
  • Widgets: Prevent widgets unintentionally being moved to the inactive sidebar ([51439] for #53657).

If you find any bug or issue, you can report them to the Alpha/Beta support forum. This will help the development team to ship WordPress 5.8. If any known issues come up, you’ll be able to find them here.

Developers can test their plugins and themes against WordPress 5.8 and update the Tested up to the version in the readme to 5.8. If you find compatibility problems please be sure to post to the support forums so the team can figure those out before the final release of WordPress 5.8.

The major release is nearing and with that, the excitement is at its peak. Are you guys ready for the WordPress 5.8 update? Drop your thoughts in the comment box.

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